KUALA LUMPUR – Sovereign wealth fund Khazanah Nasional Bhd has doubled its dividend to the government – to RM1 billion for the year ending December 31, 2023, compared to RM500 million in FY2022 – amid volatile global market conditions.
It also recorded profit from operations of RM5.9 billion, a significant increase from RM1.6 billion in 2022. This was driven by higher dividends and distributions from investee companies, fair value gains, and capital preservation.
Debt increased marginally to RM50.2 billion from RM49.1 billion in 2022.
Khazanah’s airline and tourism assets showed improved financial and operational performance. Malaysia Aviation Group Bhd (MAGB) recorded positive net income after taxes for the first time in a full year, while destination resorts and hotels made a strong recovery post-pandemic.
No additional capital injections were required during the year.
The fund also announced the realisable asset value over debt ratio remained healthy at 2.7x, while the net asset value grew from RM33 billion in 2004 to RM85 billion in 2023, resulting in a compounded annual growth rate of 5.1%.
In 2023, Khazanah deployed RM7.3 billion in new investments and raised RM7.2 billion from asset monetisation.
“We delivered a stronger performance in 2023, more than three-fold in profit as compared to FY2022. Our commitment remains as we continue to leverage our value creation efforts and portfolio rebalancing approach to strengthen our balance sheet and build a resilient financial position.
“While 2024 is expected to be yet another challenging year globally with heightened political uncertainties, advancing the country will remain our overarching theme to steer our strategies and actions towards delivering national development and ensuring a sustainable future for Malaysia,” said Khazanah managing director Datuk Amirul Feisal Wan Zahir.
Moving forward, Khazanah’s strategy for 2024 will focus on four key areas:
– Enhancing Malaysia’s role as a hub through strategic investments in Malaysia Airports Holdings Bhd (MAHB) and MAGB, in line with the New Industrial Master Plan 2030
– Supporting Malaysia’s goal of net zero emissions by 2050 through Khazanah’s leadership in Tenaga Nasional Bhd’s ational Energy Transition Roadmap execution and UEM Lestra’s green energy projects, to ensure a just and sustainable energy transition
– Leading the digital transformation across its portfolio companies to boost productivity and global competitiveness
– In 2024, Dana Impak, through a combination of existing as well as new initiatives and programmes, aims to commit an additional RM600 million for Malaysian companies. – March 11, 2024